


A Dark Kiss ((Kamukura X Komaeda))

by Anuyushi



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: AU, Demon, M/M, Nun, Religion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:28:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26339527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anuyushi/pseuds/Anuyushi
Summary: The year was 1460 A.D, Catholic beliefs were at its peak, and Komaeda was an altar server, training to be a monk.But he was pushed, pushed so far that he cast aside his beliefs for a single night to summon a creature of Hell, a demon by no other name. But when begging for his release from the world, the demon wanted something as well.♚[© 2020 |@Anuyushi ]♛
Relationships: Kamukura Izuru/Komaeda Nagito
Comments: 6
Kudos: 61





	1. Act 1; Hell's Beast

The thunder rolled and cracked outside the windows, the rain falling harder, clattering and rolling through the church pipes and dripping upon the marble floors.  
A shock of lightning burst a tree, striking it into flames that lasted mere moments before falling to the storm.  
Komaeda's hands shook but remained clasped tightly, and despite his robes getting damp from his kneeling, he did not falter.  
The candles he had placed flickered from the draft, and sense of shadowed darkness growing ever stronger.  
Another burst of thunder shook the entire building, and with a shot of lightning once more, the candles all went out, leaving him in the darkness.  
He held his breath, afraid to look up, but then again, how could he not?  
Sinister fog swept along the ground swirling around the candles in a black mist, making it difficult to breathe or see even two feet in front of his face, but beyond the fog, there was something... Something moving, something growing.|  
A figure rising from the ground, taking the shape of a human. It opened its eyes, shining scarlet, demonic eyes through the fog and looking right at Komaeda.  
"You are..." He ushered, unable to find his words before bowing his head. "Please, take me to hell with you. You don't have to but I'll do anything for you in return. You can have my soul if you wanted."  
He waited, crouched upon the church floors for the demon's response, but it never came. It was as though the world outside had frozen, the clapping of thunder and rolling storm clouds nothing but background noise.  
The fog whispered across the ground as the demon moved. One footstep tapping against the floors, then another, the darkness parting to allow the demon to move with elegance.  
Komaeda allowed himself to look at the dark robes as it stood before him, no longer confined to the circle he had created. The robes dragged across the floor, covering his feet.  
The boy found himself raising his head, taking in the demon's appearance. His robes wrapped around his pale body, leaving only his hands and face to be seen, but his hands contained claws, and his red eyes were impossible to look into for more than a moment.  
But he still wouldn't have appeared as a demon if not for the curved horns atop his head, where his midnight hair tumbled down his back and around his body as though he were a mere cloud.  
The demon squinted down to the human before him, who was begging for his help, ever so slowly lowering his hand.  
Without thinking, Komaeda reached out and took his gesture, and all at once, it felt like his heart had stopped.  
Hands as cold as ice, they didn't even feel real, as though he had just grasped a soft blanket.  
For a short moment, he couldn't breathe, like touching the demon just knocked all the air out of him at once.  
"Please," He labored his words, holding the pale hand tighter, his other hand taking a handful of his dark robes. "I can't take this world anymore. I can't keep working for the Church." He scanned the demon's eyes, but they showed no emotion.  
Instead, he blinked, casting his gaze away and paying no mind to the human clinging to him. His eyes locked upon the large Church doors, which Komaeda had cast shut with a wooden plank over them.  
If anyone knew what he was doing here today, he would be killed in the most horrible of ways. After all, he was a speaker for the lord, and yet he had summoned the blackest souls of a demon within its very walls.  
Swallowing back his fears, Komaeda followed the demon's gaze but could see nothing out of the ordinary.  
What was it he was looking at, what was he so intent on?  
Holding himself close to the demon, he tried to listen, tried to watch, but the only sound was the waves of the storm outside the walls, and the melodious tapping of the leaking roof upon the marble.  
"What? What is it?"  
To that, the demon spoke not a word. He remained as still as a statue, and then...  
Something slammed against the church doors, rattling them, nearly breaking them off their hinges.  
"Open up!" The call came from outside, and Komaeda could feel his blood run cold.  
It couldn't be true, how could they have found him out so quickly? That was what the demon sensed?  
A lantern shone over one of the window panes as someone passed by with the intention of trying to peer in, and without thinking, he allowed himself to hold the demon closer, finding it was his only chance for safety right then.  
"Nagito Komaeda, you are to be tried before the town for witchcraft and satanism, open the doors while you still can and we'll make your death painless!"  
"No..."  
It wasn't fair, no matter what he did, Komaeda was getting turned away! No matter how much he helped everyone, no matter how good he tried to be, nobody ever cared.  
And now that he was trying to make a life for himself, they wanted to kill him!  
"Please!" He looked back to the demon, his eyes full of fear. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry I summoned you only to get you wrapped up in this, but I can't take it anymore. I'll do anything, this world is so full of darkness and death and hate, Hell must be better than this. Please take me before they do!"  
He could feel his hands shaking, knees unsteady.  
The demon pulled his eyes away from the pounding against the door to look back at Komaeda, and at that moment, their eyes made contact.  
In the flash of an instant, he could see into the demon's soul, his emotions, his story, and it all melted away in a fiery blaze the moment he blinked.  
Komaeda was... He was a servant of God, and he was holding a demon, looking into his very eyes, was this the ending he was always meant to have?  
"The world is horrid," The demon finally spoke, turning his gaze away. "Is that what you are saying? That being alive is worse than Hell itself?"  
"Yes," He allowed himself to fall into the demon's arms, burying his face in his cloak. "Yes, I can't take it. Take me away from this ugly world, take me with you, before I die by their hands. What hope is for my soul if I die a sinner? Please, while I'm still holy."  
And then the Church doors seemed to shatter apart, the log they had been using to pound against it fell to the floor. But before the man could look upon the people, his world melted into the darkness.  
No, no that wasn't right.  
He was warm, and alive, his head rushing from sudden movement.  
And yet it took a moment to find the demon had taken him, accepted his embrace, and they sat upon the ceiling support beam as the town people flooded into the Church with their torches and pitchforks.  
Komaeda could feel his heart pounding so hard against his chest, he was panting just to breathe.  
The demon didn't hesitate to cover his mouth with his ice-cold hands, keeping the both of them silent.  
"He was here," One of the men called, gesturing to the summoning circle.  
"I'm not surprised," Another hissed, "He was always a weird altar serve, who the hell goes on a rant about hope in the middle of a sermon? We should have seen this coming!"  
"Who could see a demon summoning coming? Even if he was weird, he was still a man of God!"  
"Screw that!" One of them slammed his foot down on a candle. "This wasn't just skipping a day of Church or drinking wine on a Sunday, he summoned a damn demon! To do that, he was never a man of God!"  
"Silence," A woman stepped into the Church, raising her arm to calm the men.  
Komaeda swallowed, fear overtaking him, but the demon held him so tightly, it was impossible for him to fall. Despite that, he almost wanted to cry. How could the Reverend Mother be here? How could he give himself away so quickly?  
"Mother!" A few of the men bowed their heads in respect, but the priest frowned as she approached, looking to her then back to the circle.  
"Mother Peko," His eyes full of shame, "I didn't think he would have really done such a thing."  
Her silver hair sparkled with the rain, but she looked generally unaffected.  
"Who found out about this?" She looked around before someone raised their hand,  
"I did, Mother!" One of the men announced. "I went to his house to deliver a package and found this on his desk." Pulling out Komaeda's book from his pocket, he handed it over to Peko, allowing her to look through a few pages in silence before she shut it quickly.  
Komaeda bit his lip, taking a quick glance to the demon, who gave no reaction.  
It was stupid of him to leave his book on his desk, but he had been in such a rush, and his hands full of the candles, he didn't think someone would enter his home so soon after leaving.  
"Mr. Souda," Peko clutched the book tightly. "You did well on finding this. This is full of summons and spells, not to belong in anyone but a witch's possession," She shuffled past Souda as she handed the book out to the Priest. "You know what to do with it."  
With a nod from the Priest, he tucked it into his sleeve and Peko returned to looking among the townspeople.  
"He was just here, everyone kindly spread out and find him. He could not have gotten far. Be wary of the demon as well, we don't know if he succeeded."  
As everyone made their way out of the Church once more, Komaeda exhaled so heavily, he hadn't even realized he had been holding his breath.  
"I suggest we depart as well," The demon whispered behind his ear in a warm voice, causing a shiver to run up his spine.  
"Leave..." He looked back to face the demon. "You're taking me then? We're going to Hell?"  
"No," With a swift moment, the demon hopped off the beam and back into the light of the windows.  
It wasn't until they were safe on the ground did he release Komaeda and looked out into the stormy world. "We won't be going to Hell. We are going to stay right here, on Earth. I want to see this world,"  
"No!" He wasn't thinking as he reached out to the demon in a panic, intending to grab his arm, only for the demon to turn back, clutching his hand before he could even get close. "Please, please, we can't stay here," Komaeda started, not even bothering to attempt wiggling away. "Don't you understand? I summoned a demon, they all know my name and my face, I'll be killed. And you- They'll kill you the moment they see you're a-"  
"Then I'm not," Calmly releasing his hand, the demon snapped his fingers, and with that, his horns vanished, as though they had never existed in the first place.  
The man couldn't believe his eyes, it had been real magic, real... Witchcraft. He could only wonder what he possibly just unleashed upon the world.  
"Changing our location would be a trivial matter as well, the world is massive." He did not look at Komaeda as he spoke, his attention fully focused on the outside, but it was that one word his mind focused on above all else, the one thing Komaeda didn't understand.  
'our',  
"What do you mean 'our'?" He stepped closer. "I... I want to leave, I'll give you my soul for it, that's what demons want, right? You can take it, right now if you need to. I don't even know your name, why would I go anywhere with-"  
"It's Kamukura," The demon interrupted once more. "That is my name, and what you can call me," Kamukura approached the window pane, tainted with photos of Angels. He made no move to touch the holy photo though.  
"Alright, Kamukura," Sighing aloud, Komaeda lowered his eyes to the ground. "Look, I've been an altar server since my parents passed away when I was young. I've been working for the Church almost my whole life, training to be a monk. I've tried and I've worked but it's never enough," He didn't even realize he had begun to cry until the draft of cold air chilled the tears over his cheeks. "I'm always looked down on, the townspeople hurt me for being an orphan. I can't take it anymore. I've been robbed and... And beaten. They throw food at me, and call me trash. And... I know I am, and I still try so hard to bring them the hope they need! But I can't do it anymore, please, let me give up. This world is ugly at its core, there's no hope for me here anymore."  
For a long, dulling moment, the demon kept silent, intent on staring out the window. He rolled his shoulders, crossing his arms. And then he finally spoke in a gentle, monotone voice.  
"An ugly world, you say? What man of God summons a demon? It is a bold claim to rip me from Hell, beg me to throw you into the fire, and for what? A soul of a holy man? What would I do with a soul? It is useless to me. You want your request fulfilled, so I want mine."  
He turned back, catching Komaeda's gaze as the two met eyes.  
Kamukura's blood-red orbs shone bright, and Komaeda's soft green ones empty of the hope he had reached for for so long.  
Carefully, the demon approached, and offered a black feather without a word.  
It was a confusing gesture, but one Komaeda was quick to accept, but as he placed his hand on it, Kamukura's hand held atop his, not yet allowing him to take it.  
"I want to see this human world, see it for what it is, and I want you to show me. If it is as ugly as you say, I will take you to Hell. But if not, I will stay here, and so will you."  
And with that, he released, allowing Komaeda to hold the feather.  
But he didn't get a chance to hold it long.  
It seemed to melt like ice, melting into his hands, staining his skin with black.  
And when it cleared, what else stayed but a mysterious tattoo? The feather had marked itself upon him, and even as he rubbed a finger over it, the marking remained strong.  
"A reminder of our deal," Offering his hands, the demon allowed Komaeda to take them, and ever so softly, Kamukura etched his thumb over the mark. "Now then, we should leave, before they return."  
"But..." He tried to argue, but what could he even say at such a point? He had taken the demon's deal, all he had to do was prove the world was ugly, that would be easy.  
When he had nothing to say, Kamukura's arms wrapped around him in a tight embrace.  
"Do not struggle, it would be a shame to drop you."  
"What are you-"  
There was no time to speak, not a moment to even cry out. All that registered was a black coat of wings sprouted before his very eyes and the shattering of the angel's windowpane.


	2. Act 2; Too Normal

The sprinkle of sunlight cast a warm glow through the window, the smell of rain still wafted in the air.  
Komaeda pulled his arms into his chest, not yet ready to open his eyes. He didn't want to get to work yet, not when the bed was...  
No, it wasn't soft at all. In fact, it felt like a rock and smelled like manure.  
He pulled his head up off the ground, hay falling out of his hair.  
"What... Where..." A moment of looking about brought the conclusion that he had been brought to such a place for the night, but where was the demon?  
He wasn't dreaming right, he really did summon a demon? Just to be sure, he pulled up the sleeve of his robe and sure enough, the featured marking was as clear as day.  
But Kamukura himself was nowhere to be seen.   
Panic quickly struck, and he scrambled to his feet, more hay falling off around him.   
If the demon hurt, God forbid killed anyone, he would never have been able to forgive himself. Did he wait until he was sleeping before going off to kill?  
Did he just run away to break the deal on his own?  
Komaeda pushed open the barn door and almost immediately, was face to face with the demon, who proceeded to dump a bucket of water on himself just at that moment.   
"Huh..." The man paused a moment, then quickly turned his eyes away. "What are you doing-!?" Not just the fact he had witnessed a nude man, but why was he outside!? No, he wasn't a man, he was a demon, a beast. But that didn't change that he was pretty sure he hadn't wanted to see that the first thing in the morning.  
At the very least, it didn't seem like anyone had died last night.  
"What does it look like I am doing?" Kamukura scooped another bucket of water from the animal's small drinking pond, "I am bathing. The floor of a stable is dirty, and I recommend you bathe too."  
"I'm alright," He waved it off, only for his hand to suddenly be grabbed and before he could pull away, the bucket was dropped over his head, covering Komaeda in the freezing water.  
It wasn't until after did the demon let go, and Komaeda wrapped his arms around himself, unable to stop himself from shivering.  
"Wh-What was that for? I said I was alright!"  
"You smelled of pig,"  
"Yeah well," He looked back to make a comeback, only to find himself glancing at the nude man again, and turned back. He wasn't blushing, of course not.   
He only liked girls, human girls to be exact. So it would be ridiculous to be attracted to... To a demon of Hell.   
"You look like you should put your clothes back on." He finally retorted.  
It quickly clicked that he just made a demand to a demon, but instead of getting scolded like Komaeda was expecting, Kamukura merely scoffed it off.  
"When I am done. There is nobody around for a few miles, I checked while you slept. Speaking of, did you sleep well?"  
How could he speak so... Calmly to him? This was supposed to be a demon, it didn't make any sense.  
He shook his head of the water droplets still running down himself, then crossed his arms, keeping his eyes on the barn as he spoke.  
"I don't even remember falling asleep," He admitted truthfully. "Everything was so chaotic last night, perhaps I was out in moments."  
"We flew for a few hours," He heard the sound of him scooping another bucket. "I'd say we're... East of where we left, I cannot be certain, the rain clouded my vision. You fell asleep before we arrived at the barn."  
He wanted to ask what happened after they arrived, if the demon had attempted... Any sins, but there was no point. It was only a worrisome thought, and his robes were perfectly fine when he awoke.  
It was odd of a demon to act with such politeness, it was confusing everything he had known about demons from the beginning.   
They had been creatures of darkness and sin, born to inflict Despair and throw humanity off the path of God. They were killers, baby kidnappers, and yet here he was; casually speaking to one as he bathed like a child.  
"You want to know what the world is like, right?"  
"Correct,"  
"What is Hell like? I mean it would be helpful to know the uh, competition."  
Kamukura made a small noise, one that was unrecognizable, but it almost sounded like he had chuckled.  
Could demons laugh?  
"You wish to know about my world? Although I must say, it is foggy. Demons and souls do not mix together, each day felt like moments, each year just a few boring minutes ticking by. It is impossible to make out specifics, as though Hell itself were behind a mirror. We never spoke to one another, but we did not feel lonely either. We simply existed for the sake of existing. Although, one day I had heard a voice,"  
Komaeda found himself wanting to look back, his interest caught, but he refrained, not willing to allow himself to see him without his clothes again. Still, he remained quiet, allowing Kamukura to continue.  
"In Hell, Demons had no voices. There was no need to speak to another, so we didn't. It was useless to speak to ourselves, so I never said a word. When I heard that voice, it was the first time I had ever heard one, and I reached out to it. And then..."  
"You were here?"  
The demon hummed a response to confirm his question, "Now that I am here, I am confident it was you that spoke to me. I have not felt as alive as I have felt here in less than a day."  
"So what did you usually do down there?" Komaeda started to run his fingers through his still-wet hair, feeling a slight discomfort of his fluffy locks sticking to his face.   
"I don't know," The sound of the bucket being set down told him kamukura had finished washing. "Sometimes I sat and stared into space for long periods of time, or merely walked aimlessly. Hell clouded my vision, I did not even know where I was going. Every so often I would pass other demons, but there was no point in speaking to each other. I would look at him, and he would look at me, and we would never see each other again." 

"That sounds..." He couldn't even understand what he was hearing, how could anyone live in such a way? Although, he was quick to shake it off, he wouldn't allow himself to feel sorrow for a Demon, perhaps it was what they deserved for... Being Demons.   
"Enough questions about me though," Kamukura was suddenly standing beside him, fully robed once more. "That Nun... Peko, she gave your book to the priest. What was in it?"   
Opening his mouth to respond, he stopped himself and avoided his gaze. He was under no obligation to respond... And then the awkward silence fell over the two, and he could feel the demon's eyes patiently waiting.

With a sigh, Komaeda looked back, "I had been collecting witch's spells for a long time. The witches live in the woods, so I would recieve spells from them, and try to keep the Church off them in return by... Lying about their location." He looked away as he admitted it, but the demon held no reaction.   
If it were anyone else, they would have scolded him for visiting the witch's and lying to the Church itself, but Kamukura really didn't seem to care a less. Still, Komaeda continued.  
"I was desperate, I couldn't just off myself. Summoning a demon was my only way to reach for hope again. There's no way to summon an angel, you understand, right?"  
"You speak as though you want me to scold you," The demon turned away his gaze, "I don't really care what you do, I am not bound by the same rules and restrictions you are. Although," He gave a small sniff and shook his head. "Our clothes still make a maiden turn her nose up. I suggest we find something new to wear soon. Also..." With a small look of thought, Kamukura frowned ever so slightly. "You stand out too much in the Church's robes."  
"And you'll stand out in black robes," He quickly shot back; there was nothing wrong with what he was wearing. "You'll look like a Satanist,"  
"I am," The demon stated so bluntly, Komaeda remembered that wouldn't be offensive to a literal demon. "Now that we've established that, would you like a ride?"  
"A- A what-!?" It didn't take a half a second for his face to break out red, but without a word, the large wings sprouted from Kamukura's back as he raised an eyebrow.   
"Ah, you meant... In the sky..."   
What was going on with him today? Komaeda was probably still tired from the night before, he was making up stories in his head that he would have never thought about before. Perhaps it was the presence of the Demon, but he didn't feel like himself.   
"Of course I did," The demon offered his hand out for Komaeda to take. "Is there another form I am not aware of?"  
".... No."   
That was a surprising sense of innocence Komaeda couldn't break, even if it was a demon. He accepted the hand, and Kamukura pulled him close before rising into the air.  
He wrapped his arms around Kamukura's neck without thinking, holding him close so he wouldn't fall.   
Despite them both still being wet, it wasn't quite so bothering in the sun's warm rays; in fact it was rather comfortable.   
Komaeda allowed himself to look down, seeing the ground in a way he had... Never seen it before.  
The wheat farm looked like a golden blanket, and the barn was getting smaller by the second.  
It was... It was something indescribable.  
"I'd fly everywhere for a view like this," He found himself smiling, genuinely happy for the first time in too long.  
But it was quickly cut short by remembering he was in the arms of a demon.  
Looking back to Kamukura, the demon was also looking at him, red eyes sparkling like rubies.  
"Is it beautiful?" He questioned quietly, but it wasn't something Komaeda found himself wanting to answer.  
Keeping himself quiet, he merely continued to hug him close.   
It was obvious what Kamukura was attempting to do; his opinion would not waver, the world was ugly and the people within it were hateful.  
A small overhead view of a farm wouldn't have changed years of pain.  
Seeing he would get no answer, Kamukura started to travel, his massive wings flapping like a gliding bird, and both arms wrapped tightly around the human in his care.  
It was almost nauseating after a while in the air, but Komaeda didn't want to admit that, instead, he attempted to focus his mind elsewhere.  
With the speed they were going, it appeared like the clouds were dancing across the soft blue sky, but the clouds were the only thing he could see unless he chose to look down, which he would not do while they were moving.  
Well, he could see the demon, of course.  
His wings were covered in raven's feathers; the same feather that had sealed their deal.  
Next, there was his long hair, as dark as the midnight sky, but so long that reached Kamukura's knees when he stood.  
Komaeda had never seen hair so long, so well kept. It wouldn't be such a problem if he just...  
Reached out and brushed a hand through it, right?  
And it was soft, softer than the softest blanket that had ever been soft. His fingers glided through it, like it was almost nonexistent.  
It wasn't fair that a demon could be like this;  
Like... What?  
Komaeda didn't know the answer to that quite yet.  
"Like this" seemed good enough for now.   
Kamukura didn't react to his hair being messed with, at least not physically, he hadn't a clue what the demon could be thinking in his own mind.  
"I see a village," He abruptly said, quickly urging Komaeda to retract his hand and look down.  
Kamukura hadn't been lying, it was an outlying village, one without walls or gates, but it looked safe enough. No walls, no guards... That he could see of.   
But of course, it was impossible to miss their church and cross hanging high.   
"Land a little far away, if you want, of course." He wasn't going to tell a demon what to do, "Just so they don't see your wings. They have a Church."  
"I noticed," The dark demon was already descending where the grass was tall, and upon landing, his wings vanished as easily as his horns had.   
"You know humans," He stated calmly as he released Komaeda once more. "Do I pass well enough?"  
A valid question... And one he didn't think he could answer.  
The man allowed himself to take in his looks as much as possible, noticing every oddity that could come into play.  
"Well, your robes," He was sure to mention again, but the demon merely sighed.   
"I can only change parts of myself that are physically attached. New clothes are something we will need to get while there. Anything else?"  
Admittedly, looking at him now, he was fairly attractive. So much so, he barely looked human. Though that was probably the catch, he wasn't one.   
His skin didn't have a single blemish, not one thing was out of place. Perhaps his hair could have been seen as strange, but not something that would be much of a concern. And... Komaeda liked his long hair.  
Damn it, what was he thinking?  
As quick as the thought hit him, he shook it off again and turned away, unable to look any longer.  
"You're fine, just don't... Sprout wings or use magic while we're there."  
"Obviously," He sighed, then paused, "You are refusing to look at me once again, and yet I am dressed this time?"  
He... Wasn't going to reply to something like that.  
If demons were smart, it should be obvious why he wasn't looking. It was because he...  
He...

Why wasn't he again?  
"Could it be you are still intent on following the Church? Are you refusing my existence now?"  
"Of course not," The answer came with no hesitation, not a moment's thought as he turned back, catching Kamukura's eyes once more. "I just... I..."   
His uncertainty must have been obvious as he looked to the side, arms crossed, because Kamukura's eyes narrowed, and he moved closer.   
"I cannot read human emotions quite so easily. You are going to have to tell me what is on your mind."  
As the Demon reached out, Komaeda quickly stepped back, avoiding the touch, and for what?  
It was something dumb, what shouldn't have mattered at all. He didn't understand his own feelings, it wasn't personal. Although as he stepped back... He thought he could see something sad flash across Kamukura's face, but it was gone before he got a good look.   
"I'm sorry-" The attempt was met with the Demon moving past him, pushing his way through the tall grass in such speed, Komaeda had to run to catch up.   
What was wrong with him, apologizing to a...  
No, he was wrong for thinking that. That much was obvious; real demons weren't the ones from the stories he was told.   
They did have emotions, they could laugh, they could feel sad, and if the tight hold Kamukura had on him in the sky told him anything, it was that they could care too.  
"Kamukura, wait!" His attempt to call was ignored once more, and it didn't seem like he would slow down until Komaeda reached out, pulling on his sleeve.  
The demon stopped, but he didn't turn around, only giving a slight nod of acknowledgment.   
"Apologizing to me? It is worthless," He sighed out. "I may not be able to read humans quite so well, but your actions are obvious. Why did you summon a demon if you are so chained to your God? Why do you turn me away when you were begging for my help?"  
Komaeda bit his lip, unable to answer,  
"I don't know," Still, he didn't release his sleeve. "I don't understand it myself. I'm feeling things I've never felt and thinking things I've never thought before. I don't know what's wrong with me,"  
He could feel his heart drumming in his chest, a song through the beats, it was so loud, it was echoing in his ears. "So, I'm sorry. I would tell you if I knew."  
Kamukura looked back ever so slowly, his scarlet eyes bright under the sun.   
"If you cannot tell me, I have two requests of you."  
Scanning his face, Komaeda couldn't read what he wanted, but he kept quiet to listen all the same.  
"I would like you to release me,"  
The demon started, to which Komaeda quickly let go of his sleeve, allowing Kamukura to turn around completely and face him. The silence dragged on, Komaeda anxiously waiting for the next request, shifting his feet, and twiddling his fingers every couple seconds while the demon watched him with an unreadable expression.   
As Kamukura cocked his head, his black locks crossed over his shoulder, a few stray strands falling over his face, making him look even more attractive than he already was.   
"I want to know what you are feeling, so I am going to make a request to find out before we leave this field," He stepped closer and offered his hand out.  
It was a familiar gesture at this point, for Komaeda to take his hand. Perhaps it was a Demon thing, though he didn't care to explain it wasn't normal to ask someone to hold your hand every five minutes.  
Still, what would happen if he took it this time, without even knowing what the request was?  
Perhaps a... A leap of faith was needed.  
Taking a deep breath, Komaeda placed his hand atop Kamukura's, and the demon closed his hand to hold his, careful not to scratch with his claws, which now that he thought about it, Komaeda hadn't been scratched once.  
Was he really being so kind as to be conscious of his claws? Although, they could merely pass for long nails.   
"I request for you to kiss me," He held his hand, slightly tighter.   
What sort of...  
What sort of request was that!?  
"I can't do that-!" He was quick to argue. "You're a guy and... And..."  
"And a demon?"  
"Yeah, I can't kiss another boy, let alone a demon. The church will-"  
The Church... He wasn't a part of that as of last night, but would it still really be okay to do that?  
"Do not bother with my physical aspects then," Kamukura stepped closer to him, so close that Komaeda could feel his breath on his cheek. "Just as a mere figure of your feelings. A kiss is a human gesture towards someone you are affectionate with, correct?"  
"And if I kiss you... I'll know for sure." He repeated back slowly, understanding. He had never had feelings for anyone before, he was too lowly for that, too much of human scum for anyone to even want to reciprocate.  
But did he like... The same gender like that?  
Was that what such feelings were?  
The demon seemed to be waiting quietly, patiently awaiting his response.   
What was the point of refusing now? It wasn't like he was going to Heaven after summoning a demon anyway.   
With his other hand, Komaeda reached up, caressing Kamukura's cheek carefully, taking in the touch of his skin.  
It was still cold but was as smooth as marble.   
And his lips were a gentle pink, so lightly pink that they almost looked as pale as the rest of him.   
He was patient enough to wait for the human trash that Komaeda was to make up his mind... And almost seemed at peace as the man ran his thumb down his cheek to ever so carefully touch his lips.   
With a deep inhale of preparation, he closed his eyes and leaned forward, and Kamukura met him half-way, capturing a kiss.  
At first, his lips were cold, so cold they almost felt dead.  
But they were soft, soft enough that Komaeda found himself taking over, merely wanting more.  
It was his first kiss, but his body seemed to know what to do.   
The longer the kiss continued, the warmer the demon's lips became, and Kamukura returned it with delicate movements.  
He wanted it to continue as long as possible, but as his lungs cried out for air, he pulled back, and... It immediately registered how quickly he had just lost control of himself.  
But it was just a kiss, it... Meant nothing, right?  
Raising his eyes to Kamukura, the demon licked his lips and released his hand.   
"I will leave you to figure what you thought about it, although I did not expect you to dominate it quite so quickly."  
As he turned back, the demon gave a short nod for Komaeda to follow, not saying another word about it.  
But even as they left the tall grass, he couldn't help but touch his fingers to his lips, still feeling the tang of the kiss.  
His heart was beating too fast to count the beats, and he had to still come to terms that he didn't just give his first kiss to a demon man, but he controlled it.   
Was it true then? Was he finding himself falling for him?


	3. Act 3; Honesty

The demon exhaled, running his hands over the sleeves of his new shirt.   
It was peasant clothes they were lucky to get for no charge in return for trading their higher quality robes, and they would be enough to blend in, but they'd yet to feel natural for Komaeda. How many years had he been wearing the Church robes? Clothes such as the ones he wore now felt scratchy on his skin.  
"Do I look the part enough?" Kamukura adjusted the cuff of his shirt and rose his eyes to Komaeda, who merely forced a smile and nod.  
A few people were giving glances to the men, most likely because of Kamukura's hair being out of the norm, but nobody stopped to carry out their suspicions.  
But still, the man couldn't help but hold his breath whenever someone passed by.  
"I know you want to show me beauty but..." He looked around the town, finding nothing but the average village filled with average people. "I don't see anything beautiful here. These people at their core are still terrible."  
"Are you positive about that?" The demon followed his eyes, and moved an inch closer, almost making Komaeda jump.  
They had kissed, it was only a test, that didn't mean they were a thing, and it didn't change that he was still fairly uncomfortable about a demon attempting to stand so close.  
Perhaps he had clung to Kamukura when they had first met, but it was only out of desperation that he was the only one not attacking him at that moment in a fifty-foot radius, and he obviously had to hold on when flying, but that's it.  
Or... Was he just making excuses?  
No, Komaeda would return to that idea later, there were more important things to figure out at that moment other than if he was attracted to guys.  
"Of course I'm positive, they would... Kill you in a heartbeat if they knew." Without thinking, Komaeda wrapped his arms around himself in a tight hug as a form of comfort perhaps. "They'd probably kill us both in the most gruesome ways. Of course, I deserve it, I'm... I'm such a low being of a human, they wouldn't even hesitate if they discovered I summoned a demon. You could have killed me too, I begged you to take me to Hell, and you didn't. Out of everyone, why did it have to be a demon to show me kindness?"  
Kamukura remained quiet to his rambling, only giving a slow blink before turning, focusing his attention elsewhere, not appearing to care in the slightest for his self-deprecation.   
Without warning, he started off, urging Komaeda to snap out of his incoherency and hurry after, needing to run to catch up and walk beside him.  
As though he would just let a demon wander off in a village full of humans, that was simply asking for trouble, wasn't it?  
"Wait, where are you going?" Whispering only loud enough for Kamukura to hear, it was impossible to avoid the curious gazes of the people walking by.   
What could they have been thinking? Perhaps admiring the demon's beauty, or taking an interest in two men walking so close together?   
He wasn't exactly planning to ask, or allow himself to make eye contact with any of them.   
"You still believe everyone is dark at their core, so I would like to see for myself," He stated calmly, as though it were no big deal. At first, Komaeda wanted to argue, 'nobody would speak to a demon', then quickly recalled that only he knew the truth of that, and admittedly, Kamukura did do pretty well hiding his demonic traits.  
Aside from his... Lack of social skills, but that could be explained easily by the fact he had never spoken in Hell.   
Something still nagged the man about simply approaching the townspeople, but he couldn't think of a better reason not to, it was part of their deal after all, and Komaeda had yet to follow through on showing him the human world.  
As if on cue, a ball rolled onto the street, stopping Kamukura abruptly before he tripped over it, and nearly causing Komaeda to fall into him.  
Before he could say anything about the sudden stop for a ball, a few small children ran into the road, one of them picking it up with a playful laugh, only to lay his eyes on the demon and fall silent.  
The children that followed after the first all froze up, eyes wide.  
Were they afraid, perhaps?  
It would be obvious why, who wouldn't have been scared?  
But suddenly, one of them smiled brightly at Kamukura.   
"Hey, you have pretty long hair for a guy! Your mom must be really nice for letting you grow it out!" He stood before the demon without fear, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.   
"Yeah, you're lucky," Another child pouted. "Mom says boys have to have short hair, but I like it when mine grows out."  
He sighed out in annoyance before turning to one of the other boys and whispering something to him.  
One of the younger children moved past the others without a word, allowing herself to stand before the demon a mere foot away. She was shorter than his knees, couldn't have been more than three or four in age, unlike the others who were perhaps nine or ten.   
The little girl's eyes were full of wonder, and they grew even bigger as she rose to look upon Kamukura.  
Something flickered across her face, something Komaeda couldn't read physically, but somehow he knew exactly what she was feeling.  
Looking into the demon's eyes, it was the same as when he had first looked into them himself. Seeing his inner soul, the mind flooding with his own thoughts.  
A long moment of silence fell between them before she suddenly moved from her statue state to grin happily and hold her hands up to him, grabbing with her small fingers.   
Her attempt to speak to him was no more than garbled, muttered words, to which Kamukura did not respond to.  
He merely watched the child intently without moving a muscle. Not until one of the boys took her arm with annoyance did he shift his eyes to the other kids.  
"Come on Himiko, mom is waiting. She'll get mad if I leave you behind again."  
The little girl, Himiko's, face fell, and she looked like she was about to cry, but the boy paid her no mind before he picked her up, carrying her in one arm, and the ball under the other.  
"See you later, mister!"   
One of the kids gave a wave, following the main kid back from where they had first come from.  
They all started off once more, except for one.   
His fluffy brown hair unbrushed, and clothes slightly too big for his thin body. With a couple blinks, he cocked his head to the side.  
"You're new here, right?"  
Although his eyes were moreso directed at Kamukura, rather than Komaeda, and the demon offered a short nod in response.  
The kid fell quiet for a moment, lowering his gaze to his feet, before looking up once more.   
"Say um, what's your name?"   
"Izuru Kamukura," The demon held his hand out in a short gesture, with no intention of having the child actually take it, as he didn't lean down to his height.  
The kid allowed himself to process it before smiling, "That's a neat name, I'm Makoto. Hey, could I ask something else?"  
Komaeda looked to the demon, then to the child, and back, almost in disbelief of what he was witnessing.   
Kamukura gave another short nod, and Makoto looked hesitant at first before inhaling and looking away.  
"You're not a uh, human, right?"  
Komaeda felt his blood run cold, but the demon held no reaction. If he did feel afraid, he had the best pokerface in the world.  
When Kamukura didn't reply, the child continued, slowly.  
"I-I mean, I don't want to sound rude, I'd get in trouble if I was just making assumptions. It's just, your eyes. I've never seen anything like them."  
Komaeda hadn't even considered his eyes, he knew Mother Peko had red eyes as well, so he had considered it as something normal, but... If he made such a mistake like that, how long would it be until he was outed?  
"My eyes are my eyes," Kamukura ushered, "I am as human as you."  
"Sorry..." The child twiddled with his fingers, avoiding looking at the demon, when the call of a woman caused Makoto to flinch and look behind him. "That's my mom, I should go now. I'm sorry again!"   
With a wave, he hurried back, and at first, Komaeda thought that would be the last of him until he paused, looking back once more, fairly hesitant to speak.   
"Just... You seem nice, so avoid the Church, okay? They're nice too but I don't think Father would like seeing a demon."  
Before either man could even respond, the child hurried off, vanishing between the buildings.  
Although Komaeda made an attempt to follow after, he was stopped by Kamukura placing a hand atop his shoulder, like he knew exactly what the man was thinking.   
He wanted to catch that kid, vow him to silence after figuring it out, but there would be no point, would there?  
They would only have to hope the kid didn't run off and tell everyone he could.  
Exhaling, Komaeda relaxed his shoulders, and Kamukura lowered his arm, where the man turned to the demon.  
"I wasn't aware you had a full name,"  
"You never asked,"  
"Well, that's usually something you tell someone when they first ask your name."  
"You never asked that either," He raised an eyebrow, matter-of-factly. "I distinctly recall you said, 'I don't even know your name'."  
He opened his mouth to make a rebuttal, but Kamukura was right, he was so rude he never even asked his name.  
Seeing he had lost this fight, Komaeda crossed his arms and looked to his feet, accepting the defeat.  
Perhaps it was rude to not ask at first, but, he'd been rude to Kamukura almost the entire time they'd been together, hadn't he?  
Then again, he didn't exactly plan to be actually spending time with the demon he had summoned out of his own desperation.  
"Like this," Kamukura moved to stand before him, holding out his hand. "My name is Izuru Kamukura, and you are?"  
He looked to the demon, then down to his hand, pausing a short moment before setting his hand atop the man's.   
"My full name is Nagito Komaeda, It's... A pleasure to meet you?" He ended it in a question, fairly unsure if they were acting or supposed to be serious.  
The demon lightly squeezed his hand in acknowledgment before releasing, and attempting what looked to be... A forced, and fairly lopsided smile.  
Demons didn't seem to be good at smiling, did they?   
Or maybe it was just this demon in particular.   
"Anyway," Komaeda averted his eyes. "What's with you and holding hands anyway? Is it like a demon thing?"  
"Not at all," Kamukura's eyes muddled with confusion just then as he tilted his head. "I was under the assumption it was a human thing. You seemed fairly eager to hold my hand when I arrived, I was merely trying to be polite with customs."  
"You're-" What was he even supposed to say to that?   
He sounded like a child, even the way his eyes sparkled in a hint of disappointment.   
"It's not like that," He finally sighed, "I just, I was scared, it doesn't mean anything for humans. At most, shaking hands is for greetings, and holding hands is for lovers or parents and their kids. You don't need to offer your hand any time you do anything."  
"Shame," The demon turned his back, his black locks flowing like a cape as he moved. "I was fond of it."  
Sounding genuinely upset, Komaeda couldn't help but feel guilty. It wasn't harmful at least.  
"Alright, look, you don't have to stop if-"  
"Wait," The demon suddenly cut him off, picking up his nose to give a sniff. They didn't still smell like the barn, did they?   
"What is it?" He started, but Kamukura didn't respond. He was as frozen as a statue as he picked up something Komaeda didn't.  
It was just like...  
Just like last night, something caught him on edge.   
He reached out to touch the demon, hopefully awakening him from his mysterious trance, but Kamukura pulled him close and hushed the man before he could complain.  
What was going on, what just happened?  
Pressing himself against the wall, keeping an almost death grip of a hug around Komaeda, the demon peered out over the main street they had just come from, and Komaeda couldn't help but wiggle loose just a bit to do the same.   
If his heart wasn't beating fast enough from being held so close, it was definitely going wild now, but with fear this time.  
A carriage lay parked by the town entrance, the door wide open as Peko stepped out, her pristine robes catching the attention of everyone around her.   
"That is the nun from earlier, correct?" Komaeda's ear tingled as Kamukura whispered, but he wouldn't say anything about it or try to let it show how such a demon was getting to him.  
"Yeah..." He bit his lip and pulled back before she happened to catch a glimpse of his fluffy hair. "But how is that possible? You said you were flying for hours, she must have been right on our tails if she's here already."  
"The storm..." Kamukura narrowed his eyes in thought. "It had affected my sense of direction. If she arrived so quickly, then I might have gone in a circle. There's a chance we're not as far as we thought we were."  
If he were not a holy man, Komaeda would have yelled a few obscene curses.  
What was he to do? Kamukura, she didn't see, but she definitely knew Komaeda's face.  
And just his luck, Peko's voice was coming closer as she spoke to one of the fellow nuns.  
Running would just be asking to be chased by this point now, flying would cause the entire town to fall into hysteria. Komaeda could feel an onslaught of a panic attack with every passing second until Kamukura suddenly released him.  
"I have an idea. Pull your hood up," He gestured to the sweater he was wearing before pulling up his own.  
With the demon covering his face, his long hair gave off the appearance of him being a woman. Komaeda followed after, but once he pulled his hood up, Kamukura wrapped his arms around the man's neck, pulling him close. So close, their lips were almost touching.  
And he remembered the kiss; the way it felt, how there was a chance... He wanted to do it again.   
But what was he doing? Why was he following a demon's plan?!  
Despite Komaeda attempting to back away, Kamukura held him in place.  
"Don't struggle," He whispered quickly. "Simply pretend we are lovers. And do not speak, if she approaches us, stay where you are with your hood up, and let me talk."  
It took a moment, but the plan finally clicked in Komaeda's brain.   
Perhaps... It could work.   
He stayed still, allowing Kamukura to hold him how he was, although looking into his eyes as they stayed in such a position...   
He could feel the thrumming of his heart, and it didn't take but a few seconds to relax himself against the demon.  
"We are only acting," It almost sounded like Kamukura was attempting to joke, "You need not be so close if you are uncomfortable standing like this with another man."  
The sound of Peko's voice was growing louder, closer, she could be turning any moment, but it oddly became the last thing on his mind.  
He didn't say a word in response, he still wanted to feel somewhat proud, whatever pride he had left that was.   
But hopefully, he would understand without words as Komaeda pressed their lips together for a second time.   
It didn't really matter anymore, did it?  
He was no longer a part of the Church, so he was not bound by the rules anymore.  
But this would be his coming to terms that perhaps he was not as attracted to women as he thought he was.  
The demon didn't stop him at all, rather, he accepted it, embraced it, the hold he had on Komaeda tightened, and he dug his claws into his shoulder.  
Not enough to cause too much pain, but he certainly was seeming to enjoy it as well.  
"This is the only town close enough to run to on foot," One of the nuns walked behind him. "If he escaped the village, he has to be here. There's nowhere else."  
"And you're sure he's not in the village?" Peko followed after.  
"Yes, Mother. Every townsfolk was searching throughout the night. Every basement, attic, store, and underbridge was checked. People even scoured the catacombs."  
Peko gave a hum, and the footsteps of the nuns came to a halt.  
Of course they were noticed, luck was not on his side.  
"Ah, excuse me?" The call of the Nun urged him to break the kiss, but he was careful not to turn around, letting Kamukura handle it as he said.  
"Yes?" He kept his voice in a soft whisper, perhaps his attempt at sounding more feminine. In reality, he had a very noticeable man's voice, as cool and collected as possible, but it was... Passable at least.  
"I'm sorry for interrupting Miss, and to you as well, Sir, but have you seen someone we're looking for?"   
Peko approached, and he could feel his heart pounding as she stood right behind him.   
It only took one pull of his hood if she got suspicious...  
Still, he bit his lip, keeping quiet as the Nun offered a paper out for Kamukura to take and examine.  
"He's to be tried for crimes against God," She explained politely, allowing him to take a look at the sketch that had been done.  
Kamukura acted like he was looking at it carefully, before nodding and handing it back.  
"I am afraid not, I would have remembered seeing someone with such fluffy hair."  
"I see..." She hesitated before suddenly handing the paper to Komaeda, "And you Mister? Does his face ring a bell?"  
Alarm bells were certainly going off in his head, but as best as he could without shaking, he took the paper and looked down on it.  
They had sketched him almost perfectly, but his eyes looked cold, likely an attempt to make him look dangerous.  
Quickly shaking his head, he handed it back, careful not to say a word.  
Peko had been someone he grew up with, someone that knew him likely more than he knew himself. If he said a single thing, it could be all over.   
"Are you sure?" She placed her hand over his, pushing the paper back for him to see again. "He wouldn't be hard to miss. Would you please take another look?"  
"He said he has not seen him," Kamukura interjected, his voice cold, but still attempting to sound hospitable. "Might you go ask someone else?"  
Peko remained silent a long moment before she finally pulled the paper back, folding it gently and tucking it into her sleeve.   
"Very well," Finally, it seemed like she was backing off, but the hope didn't last long. She made a gesture to the other nuns that he couldn't see quite so well, and then without warning, Komaeda was being pulled back, losing his footing and falling to the ground.  
One of the nuns pulled his hood down, while two more kept Kamukura pinned to the wall.  
"Of course," Peko exhaled, almost looking disapointed. "You've always been a reject, you couldn't even hide your hair well enough. I thought that blond looked familiar."  
Komaeda had no response, or more like, he was too afraid to talk back. Her eyes turned to the demon, appearing confused before she seemed to understand.  
"Ah, release him," She ordered the sister nuns, who were quick to obey and let go of Kamukura. "You won't want to be tainting your fingers with a demon."  
As Peko moved close to him, she examined him carefully, then pulled his hood down as well, catching his sharp eyes, filled with more emotion than Komaeda had seen yet.   
"A male demon, at that," The woman wiped her hands on her robes, as though merely pulling his hood down was enough for her skin to have been infected. It nearly took him by surprise, Peko not being struck by looking into his eyes as he and Himiko had been. "Chain them both up, we'll execute the demon tonight, and Komaeda in the morning."  
"No-!" Komaeda tried to struggle, but a couple nuns quickly held him down. Still, he wouldn't just stand by and let that happen! "You can't kill him, he hasn't done anything wrong!"  
"He is a demon!" Peko snapped back, "That is enough! Instead of begging for him, you should be crying for your own life! You're nothing but wasted potential, you could have become a Monk, but you let yourself fall, and you fell so far you summoned a Hell's spirit. Do you know what that means?"  
He didn't reply, or couldn't really. Komaeda was biting his lip so hard to make sure he didn't cry in front of her that he though he was going to break skin.  
Peko approached slowly, and kneeled beside him, a sad look upon her face,  
"I tried to be there when your parents passed away, Father Fuyuhiko and myself, we wanted what was best for you. We trained you so much, and wanted you to grow up being someone we could be proud of. But when you summoned that demon, you rejected not just the Church, but us as people. Where did those eyes so full of hope go?"  
He turned away from her for a long minute to think; what was he doing, really?  
She was right, they had tried to be there for him, but not in the ways he needed. He needed someone beside him to pull him up, not someone above him to drag him to their expectations.  
Well...  
Perhaps he figured it out.  
Komaeda looked back to her, her red eyes waiting for him to speak. After a long inhale, he looked back to Kamukura, standing on his own, watching the scene before him, as though he were... Waiting for something.  
He could have run, could have spread his wings and flown away, and yet he stood there.  
"I had nothing to hope for," Komaeda was... No longer talking to Peko. "Nobody accepted me, nobody heard me. I wanted to give up, and turn myself over to death while I was still free of sin. So I summoned a demon. But he didn't hurt me, his words didn't scar my heart like everyone else that spoke to me. And it hasn't been very long yet, but I haven't completed my end of the deal, but he already completed his. For either of us to die now, I couldn't handle it because... Because he's my hope!" He had to lower his eyes, too embarrassed to look at Kamukura as he said that. "He's the only beautiful thing in this world right now, and I'm probably a disgusting fool for falling for him so quickly, but I don't know what I'd do if that one sliver of happiness was taken from me so soon. Please, please don't kill him. We'll go far away, you'd never see me again, I just... I just don't want to lose this hope I'm clinging to."  
He didn't realize he was crying until the salt touched his lips, and the nuns remained quiet.  
Even Peko stayed silent for a long moment before she sighed and stood up.  
"Beautiful words, but I can't let that happen-"  
"I was waiting for that," Kamukura interrupted her without a second thought. The man didn't look up as his footsteps came closer. "I felt your heart when you first looked into my eyes. You captured the feelings of a demon when you took my hand and accepted my mark."  
Carefully, Komaeda pulled up his shirt sleeve, revealing to the rest of the nuns the black feather etched across his skin. A few gasps were heard, and the nuns holding him quickly let go, but nobody said anything.  
"And now that you have returned them with your kiss and words here, that means you belong to me completely."  
Looking up at that moment, Komaeda saw the demon features melting back into reality; his horns that stood tall, and his wings that spread out, he almost looked like a dark angel.   
"Do you hear me, Komaeda? Do you belong to me?"  
"... Yes."   
He reached his hand out for the demon to take, and he thought he saw a smile flash over Kamukura's face before he lurched forward, pulling the man into his arms.  
Peko gave a cry, but it was already too late to stop them as they took to the sky.


	4. Act 4; Hell's Fire

At first, there was darkness.   
But darkness was not to be feared, for, within the darkness, there is hope for a flicker of beautiful light, like the stars twinkling upon the blanket of the midnight sky.  
For it is when there is light one must be afraid.  
Within the light, there are lies, and those lies trick the eyes into believing in their beauty.  
When one cannot see, they can hear, they can feel, they can slash at the lies presented as a neatly tied box of beauty.  
Komaeda reached his arm into the dark abyss, no fear piercing his heart.  
His fingers stretched over a soft coat of feathers that covered him like a safe shell.   
He exhaled, and in turn, felt the warm breath of the demon breathing as well.  
With his other hand, he reached up, and ever so carefully, caressed his fingers across his tall horns. They were as smooth as water, but the point pricked his finger, sharper than a blade.  
Still, he gave a breathless laugh before wrapping his arms around Kamukura in a tight hug.  
"I'm yours, I'm all yours."  
The demon's hand cross over his back, pulling him into a hug in return. His long hair tickled Komaeda's skin, but he didn't mind in the slightest.  
"Yes, you are mine. Am I yours?"  
"Yes," He whispered back into Kamukura's ear. "I'm so lucky to be able to say that. You saved my life twice now, after all. I really don't deserve it."  
Kamukura pulled back from the hug to meet Komaeda's green eyes, the short eye contact ending with a warm kiss. The demon softly grazed his lips with his tongue, and the man was quick to give in, allowing their tongues to mingle.  
A demon's dark kiss... It tasted of chocolate, but so pure, the kiss from a man that had never uttered a word until a mere day ago.   
The moment of peace would not have been able to last long though as a panicked cry made Komaeda flinch and pull away in a panic.  
Not that he wanted it to end, but then again, he had no idea where they had landed, after all.  
It had been a... Crashlanding, that ended with Kamukura wrapping his wings around him for protection.  
But what had caused it?  
Instead of wiping away the small dribble of their saliva off his lips, Komaeda couldn't help but lick it himself before beginning to pull himself up and off of Kamukura where the demon had fallen on his back.  
At the very least, he didn't seem hurt enough to say anything about it, but he did still feel bad about adding the extra weight atop him.  
As he sat up, Kamukura's wings cracked open, and light flooded Komaeda's eyes, allowing him to take in the sights of the town's Church.  
The irony...  
The worshipers there all had risen from their benches and backed away, leaving the men in a wide, spacious circle as they all watched with terrified eyes.  
"It's a demon..." Someone whimpered. "A demon fell from the sky!"  
"Look at his horns, he's hideous!"  
Komaeda was quick to ignore their harsh words, he knew better by now. But as he returned his gaze to Kamukura, his eyes quickly widened and he scrambled off.  
"Yo-Your wing-!" He knelt beside the demon, seeing the cause for their painful landing.  
Someone had shot an arrow clean through, the arrowhead now stabbing into the ground with his wings spread.  
"It does not hurt," He sat up, but frowned slightly looking at it. "I will not be able to fly us an escape though."  
"He's helping a demon," Someone whispered from the crowd.  
Still, Komaeda shook his head. "It doesn't matter if it doesn't hurt, it's not right. You're not like the demons they're scared of, they just need to see..." He swallowed, carefully wrapping his hand around the arrow. "I shouldn't pull, the arrow will just hurt coming out."   
Saying that, Komaeda carefully bent, then broke the arrow in two. As he pulled one half out, the arrowhead itself fell, revealing a bleeding hole within his wing.  
He wasn't a professional medic, but he had witnessed the nuns helping with hunting accidents the same way. But bandaging a massive wing wasn't something he knew to do.  
Without a word, he looked to Kamukura, who returned a calm look in turn.  
"Someone do something already!" The cry of a woman brought Komaeda back to reality and he pulled himself to his feet.  
"Please, you're wrong about them!" He tried, "He saved my life! They're not bad!"  
"Liar!"  
"Kill them!"  
"It is useless," Standing up on his own, Kamukura's wings melted away, though he did hiss in pain, suddenly feeling the injury.  
Without warning, Komaeda's own arm burned and he looked down to the feather marking, glowing a soft red.  
He was hurt so... Komaeda would feel the pain as well.   
They were linked more than he first realized, but Kamukura helped him enough, it was Komaeda's turn to live up to his end of the deal.  
He looked up to the roof where the large hole above them let in some stray sunlight, and couldn't help a smile.  
For what, he wasn't sure, but at that moment, he wanted to smile.  
Kamukura was as still as a statue once more, so that probably meant forces were closing in around the Church, and there wasn't anywhere to run this time.  
A few mothers were protectively holding their children, the men tense and looking like they were ready to fight.  
Not even the Priest of the Church knew what to do, he kept himself kneeling on the floor, hands clasped in prayer.  
And then the doors opened, and only Peko stood.  
She dropped the bow she was carrying and as calm as ever, entered the Church like it was simply another day.   
"I did not say you could run," She frowned, hands neatly clasped. "You will return to the village, and you will perish for your crimes."  
Komaeda wanted to speak, but quickly thought better of it. She already looked scary enough without him upsetting her more.   
Kamukura shot a glance to the man, speaking no words, but held hand out to the woman in a kind gesture.  
"Fighting in a place like this assists nobody. If you are intent on it, we can go outside."  
Peko paused her walking, only to furrow her eyebrows.   
"The fact that you stand here now taints this hall enough."  
"Mother Peko, please!" Komaeda bowed his head to her, finally speaking up. "He's not like the demons we fear, please, listen to him."  
"You are to remain silent, this does not concern you right now. Your time will come later,"   
She slowly tucked her hand into the sleeve of her robe and as she pulled back, what came with was a glittering golden sword.  
The small bands holding her silver hair in braids over her shoulders came loose, freeing her hair to tumble down around her face, but as her sword sparkled, blinding Komaeda, he was forced to turn away.  
But he couldn't just avert his eyes for long, of course he was a part of this right now, and he wouldn't just abandon an innocent.  
It... It wasn't a crime to exist!  
But as he turned back to Peko, he almost couldn't believe his eyes as white wings spread across her back, her eyes shining redder than real rubies.  
But... How was that possible? He had known Peko almost his entire life, how could she have been an angel!?  
As if reading his mind, Kamukura narrowed his eyes,  
"Did that book of yours happen to contain transformation spells?"   
"Yeah..." Komaeda couldn't lie about that, "I only wrote down what the witches told me, I... I wasn't planning on using any but the summoning."  
"So she is not a real angel,"  
"Real enough..." He swallowed, finding himself shuffling behind the demon. "I thought she was planning on burning the book. Fuyuhiko must have given it back when everyone left. But she looks... Serious."  
"You don't need an assumption for that," Peko rose her sword, taking a fighting stance. "Unfortunately, I see myself at the advantage right now. You can stand down now and die with honor or try to fight and die a loser."  
The demon kept himself quiet, not quite appearing like he was thinking too hard about it, but not like he accepted it either.  
More like he was... Waiting.  
But for what?  
Suddenly he rolled his shoulders and gave a small glance to Komaeda,  
"There is a lantern hanging beside the doors outside, might you give a... Warning to the town?"   
"Even now you try to pretend you're doing good, but that won't save you." The woman began to inch her way closer, her sword aimed for his throat, but he didn't move, simply kept his eyes locked on her.  
What sort of warning was he talking about though? If it was some sort of code...  
He wasn't so smart as to understand.  
Though as Peko moved closer, Kamukura backed up, bumping his shoulder into Komaeda and pulling his attention back.   
"Wave the lantern around, tell people to stay away. But don't do it too close to the Church though. This place is made purely of wood."  
What was he...  
Suddenly it clicked what he was trying to say, and Komaeda nodded, hurrying outside as quickly as he could.  
Just as Kamukura had said, a lantern hung beside the Church, guiding all to the doors.  
He would return it later, but for now, Kamukura needed his help.  
As he pulled it off the hook, he couldn't help glancing inside where Peko had taken to the air and was swinging her sword with ferocious speed. The demon was dodging it easily, but how long would be able to keep it up? It wasn't as though he had a weapon of his own, and he wasn't able to fly if needed.  
Hopefully though...  
What he was going to do wouldn't harm Kamukura. He had only just accepted he had feelings for him after all.  
He took a deep inhale, ready to throw it towards the walls, when suddenly Komaeda's arm burned as though it had just been scorched.   
He couldn't help a hiss, dropping the lantern to coddle his arm and looked to the window to see Kamukura had been cut across his cheek, blood now dripping down his face.  
Still, he felt a sense of relief it wasn't worse, but Komaeda needed to hurry.  
Picking up the lantern, followed by quickly stomping out the small fire that had attempted to take the grass, he tossed it towards the Church.  
The lantern hit the wall with a clank, and a small fire started to spread, but not fast enough.  
Damn it, why couldn't anything go right?  
Pulling out some grass from the ground, Komaeda crouched beside the lantern, blowing some air to get it growing, then tossed in the grass, which was quick to burn and feed the small fire.   
His arm burned once more, and panic took over.  
The fire wouldn't be fast enough, he needed to...  
His eyes landed on the bow Peko dropped, and Komaeda ran over, scooping it up and attempting to set the arrow in it once more.  
She must have set it right after she shot them down, in case she missed, but there were no spare arrows to be seen, he only had one shot, and if he hit Kamukura...  
No, he couldn't think about that.  
That demon was his hope now, his reason to move on. It wasn't as though he wanted to harm Peko, but if she were knocked back to the ground, she wouldn't have as big an advantage.  
He pulled the bow back, keeping the arrow as steady as possible.  
Admittedly... Komaeda had never fired a bow, there was never a need, but it couldn't be that hard right?  
She kept herself in the same spot as she hit her next attack, which Kamukura dodged again, and Komaeda shot.  
At first, the arrow seemed to vanish, and he was almost convinced he'd missed.   
But Peko let out a cry, and her wings gave out, causing her to collapse upon the floor and drop her sword as she tried to pull the arrow out of her pristine dove wings.  
It was impossible not to feel bad, he never wanted to fight her in the first place, let alone shoot her, but he did feel a little happy about catching her wing.   
It would be her karma for doing the same to Kamukura, well, he'd like to think that's what it was, and that he didn't just shoot the nun that raised him.  
Kamukura didn't waste the opportunity to grab her sword away and step back, allowing her a chance to pull the arrow out of herself and stand up again, biting back the pain yanking it likely just caused.  
The smoke from outside was growing, and the terrified people still in the Church could smell it just as easily as Komaeda could.  
Forgetting their fear of the demon, they hurried out the door, crying over each other to the point Komaeda couldn't make out what anyone was saying.  
A few people bumped into him, nearly causing him to fall but everyone safely evacuated.  
The only ones that didn't was Kamukura, and Peko, who was blocking him from running away.  
Blood was dripping down her white feathers, and a few scratches on Kamukura also bled, but neither was willing to attend to them with the enemy before them.  
"You have to leave!" Komaeda tried. "The fire is growing!"  
"Not until I rid this place of the demon!" Peko clenched her fists, then tried to swing, but her barrage of attacks with the sword likely tired her out, because Kamukura caught her effortlessly.  
Although, it looked like he had become tired too, the demon panting lightly in attempts to get his breathing stable once more.  
She just... Didn't want to give up, did she?  
Swallowing his fears, Komaeda entered the Church, the crackling of the growing fire becoming louder. Then he broke into a run, capturing her in a hug from behind, and catching her off guard.  
"Please, just leave, will you? He's not your enemy, nobody is! Nobody wants to fight you, nobody wants to die. Please just be my Mother again, please listen to his words, he's good."  
His tears were soaking the back of her robes, but Peko did not turn around.  
She remained standing, frozen like a statue.  
Komaeda thought he had upset her as she began to shake when without warning, she dropped her face in her hands.  
"Komaeda..." Her words could barely be heard over the flames, and breathing was becoming difficult with the smoke.   
Suddenly Peko collapsed, and he had to be quick in shifting his hug to supporting her from falling.  
Kamukura approached, ever so carefully maneuvering one of her arms around his neck.  
"She breathed in a lot of smoke while she was flying,"  
"Are you okay?" Komaeda moved himself to take her other arm, to which the demon nodded.  
"Do not forget I came from hell; smoke is nothing. But I suggest we step out before you end up in the same position as her."  
Although he wanted to talk more, Kamukura was right, the smoke was already getting to him, and the structure of the Church was getting more dangerous with every passing second.  
The men started to the doors, carrying Peko along with.  
Even after stepping outside, the smoke continued to fill the hot air, he couldn't even focus on the townspeople who were watching them just then, all he knew was they needed to get away from the Church as fast as possible, and Peko was getting increasingly heavier as he was becoming more exhausted.  
"Here," Kamukura stopped once they were decent enough away and the two gently placed the woman on the ground.  
Komaeda was quick to follow, dropping himself beside her to catch his breath again.   
The demon, on the other hand, remained standing beside him, arms crossed and watching him quietly.  
"Are you in pain?" He questioned slowly; which was funny coming from him, still bleeding.  
So funny, Komaeda couldn't help a smile while leaning against the wall.   
"Hearing a demon ask if I'm alright, it... It makes me happy. But I do want to ask something."  
He rose his eyes to Kamukura, who waited for his question patiently.   
"When I begged you to take me to Hell, I said I would give anything at all for it. I wanted you to take my life, and you saved me, before I even accepted your deal. Why did you... Why did you do that?" The smoke was hurting his lungs, but he needed to ask anyway. "Why even ask for a deal anyway? Why... Save my life? Surely it wasn't just because you knew I was attracted to you."  
"No," He cocked his head, allowing his black hair to fall over his shoulders. "It was the other way around. You are... Very fluffy. I did not care to harm you. The fact you accepted the deal baffled me the most. But..."   
He kneeled down beside the man and offered his hand to take, to which Komaeda did without a second thought.  
"A deal is not needed anymore, wouldn't you say?" Kamukura placed his other hand over the dark marking. "You said it yourself, you found that beauty. And you fulfilled your end as well, I am pleased with the humans. But that means we will both be staying here. Is that alright?"  
Komaeda bit his lip, looking to the still sleeping Peko, then back to him.   
"Yeah, I wouldn't want to leave her now anyway, I think she needs me too. Which is pretty ridiculous to think anyone may need me but-"  
He stopped himself as the demon gave him an unreadable look. He didn't even have to say anything, the two people that meant the most to him were right beside him.  
He exhaled, allowing Kamukura to wipe away the feather, but he didn't wait a moment more when the demon pulled back to wrap him in a hug.  
"That was amazing," A familiar voice brought the two to look up to Makoto, eyes shimmering excitedly. "You saved an angel from the fire! I said you were nice, I knew it!"  
Another quickly hurried over, the woman grabbing her son's hand. Her eyes flickered in hesitation upon being before a demon, but she cleared her throat and stood up tall to face him.  
"I don't know why you did it, I'm not even sure I can trust you, but the kids told me about you and... Himiko spoke when she got home so I can only assume you had something to do with it-"  
Himiko... That child that looked into his eyes?  
"Himiko never said a real word before that!" Makoto interrupted, earning a quick shush from his mother as she continued,  
"But you saved that angel, something a demon to be feared would never do. So... Thank you." She bowed her head, and one by one, more people approached, but nobody's eyes were filled with hatred.  
A few attempted to touch Kamukura's hair, others were more focused on the angel, but it felt... Safe.  
Suddenly, someone approached, larger than the other people. Her arms crossed and revealing her strong muscles.   
"Mother Sakura!" Someone cried out, causing the excited crowd to fall silent.  
The woman looked like she could have been built with three of Komaeda, maybe more. Her hair long and as white as snow, and her eyes were... Angry.  
At least he thought they looked angry.  
"A demon in my village," She ushered, looking him up and down, before catching a glance to Komaeda, "And you brought him here, yes? That is what the other nuns mentioned."  
"Y... Yes,"   
There was no denying she was scary, was she going to order a burning for them or something?  
Sakura remained quiet a long moment as she thought with her eyes closed, then opened them once more, focused entirely on Komaeda.   
"Your demon rescued Mother Peko, who appears to be an angel," He wouldn't mention anything about the book, a real angel was earning them more appreciation than hate. "It was something he had no business doing. So tell me, is your demon safe?"  
An odd question, but Komaeda swallowed back from his burning lungs and gave a confident nod.   
"He saved my life twice, I would trust him around any elder or child."  
"I see..." She kept quiet a moment more, then flicked her gaze to Kamukura. "Then you are welcome here for as long as you wish to stay. But other towns won't be pleased to hear we are protecting a demon. Keep yourself hidden, and..." She looked to Peko and gave a wave to some of the townspeople. "Take her to the doctor."  
He almost couldn't believe his ears, Komaeda wanted to cry at the news, they would really be safe here?  
He pulled Kamukura into another hug after he hid his horns once more.  
"Did you hear that? We can actually stay here, and... Maybe even live here?"  
"Are you requesting that to be together?" The demon pulled back with a raised eyebrow, suddenly making Komaeda feel self-conscious. He looked away quickly before he let himself reply.  
"Of course, but only if you want to, I know I could be pretty repulsive so if you'd rather live with someone else-"  
He was swiftly cut off with a short kiss, earning a few surprised gasps from the townspeople, but he didn't care about explaining their relationship just then.   
As he pulled back, Komaeda exhaled and gently wiped some drying blood off the demon's face. "You're still hurt,"  
"They will heal," He whispered, "But I will not accept living with anyone but you. I love you."  
His heart pounded hearing those words he had never heard before.   
"I..." Komaeda rose his eyes to meet his, "I love you too."


End file.
